Artemis Fowl: A new era
by dreadedreviewer
Summary: Prepare to meet a being more powerful than No.1 and Qwan combined. Will Holly, Artemis and all their friends be enough to stop him? And will Artemis be able to keep his feelings for Minerva at bay? Post Lost Colony
1. Robbery

**Well, this is my first Artemis Fowl fanfic. I have just been writing some Jimmy Neutron fanfics, so I am pretty used to snide comments, don't be afraid to give constructive critizism. However, remember that the key word is constructive! I do apologize if my story isn't very good, and if the details aren't very accurate. I have not read all the books for a long time now, and have forgotten many of the details.**

**If you do not like the Artemis x Minerva pairing, then I suggest that you stop this story now. Whilst this is not going to be some sappy story about the two meeting up, etc. etc., the main relationship behind the plot will be based on them. What does everyone have against Minerva anyway? She's right for Artemis in my opinion...Anyway, I don't expect to win one of those Orion awards (or whatever they are called) for this story, as there is so much anti-Minerva on this site. So this story is just for my (and your) personal enjoyment.**

**I hope you enjoy this fic, and please review. I am quite tight for time, having school at the moment, so I do not have ample time to write. It does encourage me to update, however, if I get reviews.**

**_Artemis Fowl: A new era_**

**Magic Gems Enterprises, Haven City, Lower Elements**

A figure in a long, dark cloak, which reached down to his feet, walked into the foyer of Magic Gems Enterprises. He was quite tall for fairy standards, standing at 1.7m. He had snow-white hair, and piercing blue eyes. Quickly, he surveyed the room. Apart from the entrance, there was only one other door, no doubt leading to the elevators. Guarding the door were two huge goblins, armed with advanced looking tazors and thick armour. These goblins had been suspected leaders in the attempted Goblin Revolt _(A.N: As mentioned in "the Eternity Code"). _They had only escaped jail because the gem company had paid for their defence, in return for their services. These were two of the biggest and meanest of all the goblins. Walking up to the young pixie at the counter, the figure said, "I need an all access pass to this building."

"Do you have some ID for that?" the pixie asked him suspiciously.

"Of course I do," he replied, layering his voice in magic.

"Yes, of course you do…" replied the pixie, "Have you been waiting for a long time?"

"Oh, you have no idea," he said, and he pointed a finger at the pixie.

Out came a red bolt of energy, blowing the pixie back into the wall. The goblins immediately sprung into action, but they never stood a chance. The mysterious figure threw them back with a blast of magic. And with that, he walked through the doors and waited for an escalator.

* * *

**Fowl Manor**

Meanwhile, Artemis was nervously making his way up to the front door of the Fowl Mansion, with Butler at his side. He had spoken to his parents several hours ago. They had not believed Butler at first when he first spoke, thinking that he had finally gone completely crazy with guilt over their poor son. But finally, as Artemis spoke to them, they recognised his voice, his words, his manner, and had eventually accepted that their son was back at last.

"Oh, Arty!" Angeline had sobbed into the phone, "I can't believe...after all these years..."

"Yes, my boy, where could you have been?" his father had asked, barely able to maintain composure.

Finally, Artemis had been able to convince them of a story about being kidnapped when he and Butler were mobbed by 20 men. That, he decided, would be a suitable story before he could manage to use his new magic to wipe away all the pain that he had caused. Artemis had now reached the door. He brought his left hand up, and knocked thrice.

It was Juliet who opened the door.

"Arty?" she asked in disbelief, "is that really you?"

"Juliet? when did you return from your Wrestling Tour?"

"About 2 years ago, when I was called back to care for the twins." Juliet replied, before shouting, "Mr Fowl, Mrs Fowl! Arty is home! He's back!"

Angeline and Artemis Sr. came down the stairs, staring at the boy standing in the foyer. They weren't able to mutter a single word, but simply hugged the son whom they had not seen for 3 years. Finally, they released him.

"Oh, Arty, we've been waiting for you for so long...we were hoping for so many months that you would return...no private investigators could find a trace of you-we thought you were dead..." Angeline told him.

"Yes, son, we were so worried for you. We begged that you hadn't been hurt...we've told the twins all about you though! You can meet them at dinner tonight," Artemis Sr. added.

"We can finally have dinner as a complete family," Angeline said, barely able to hold back the tears, then she added, "And of course you are invited, Butler."

"Thankyou, very much for your kind offer," Butler replied, "I would be happy to join you."

Artemis, who had been silent throughout this entire ordeal, hugged his parents again, and walked up the flight of stairs to his bedroom. "Well," he thought, still sadenned by all the pain which he had caused his parents, "that was the easy part...now the harder one, the call to Minerva..."

_Well, that's the first chapter. Sorry it was so short, the next one will be longer, if I get enough reviews._


	2. Plans

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed my story! I have just remembered that I forgot a disclaimer in the last chapter. _So here it goes; I do not own Artemis Fowl, or any affiliated characters. _Wow! Wasn't that interesting? Did anyone already know that?**

**Anyways, please review, as that is what encourages me to update.**

**Haven City, Lower Elements**

Haven was in frenzy. The biggest jewel store underground had been robbed. And what was worst, LEP was being blamed for the entire incident. The LEP headquarters was only two blocks away from this prominent store, and yet they had still been unable to apprehend the robber, or as they thought, "robbers".

Commander Trouble Kelp sat at his desk, trying to keep composure. He had been the successor of Commander Sool, the "idiot who was willing to let the eighth family die out" as the PICS E (Police Investigating Conduct Squad of the Elements) had put it. _(AN: Anyone get the PICS E reference?). _But this was not proving to be the easy first decade that Trouble had been hoping for. With the demons now also residing in the Lower Elements, there were many more duties for the LEP to perform. The last thing he needed was another big case, which would blemish the face the face of the LEP name even more than three different commanders in 4 years had done already. But Trouble couldn't put his finger on it. How could these robbers get their hands on a key card, knock out a fully grown pixie and two massive goblins in armour, then steal one single gem, and escape the building in the five minutes that it took the LEP to get to the building and seal off all exits? The media wanted to know this too, which had added even more to the poor commander's troubles. His interview had not gone well.

"Commander Kelp, what is the LEP planning to do about this robbery?"

"Commander, why didn't the LEP respond in time?"

"Commander, does the LEP have any leads to the suspects? If not, why not?"

Trouble had been forced to lay all cards out on the table, and admit that he knew nothing. Somehow, the robbers had disabled the cameras in the rooms, so that nothing was on tape. Before he could bask in his own troubles even more _(AN: No pun intended)_, there was a knock on the door, and Captain Holly Short entered.

* * *

**Fowl Manor**

Artemis quickly had a shower, washing all the dirt off his body. Then he lay down on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. To anyone who didn't know him, it would look simply like the boy was day-dreaming. But in fact, there were hundreds of ideas flying around in Artemis' mind. These included a plan to help his parents remove all they pain which they had felt during his absence and his other big challenge, to call Minerva.

Just as he was mapping out his plans in his mind, Butler entered the room and said, "Artemis, it's time for dinner."

"Thankyou, Butler," Artemis replied and he followed Butler out of the door. As they walked down the stairs into the dining hall, Artemis asked, "Butler, did anyone else but my parents hear the fairy stories?"

"No, I told no-one else, and they were too distraught to mention anything that made them think of you…"

"OK," Artemis replied, "that will make it easier for me."

**Sorry for ending it so abruptly there, but I need to go and do some other work now. Please review, as that is the way to get more updates!**


	3. New Beginnings

**Nothing to say here…'cept I still don't own Artemis Fowl or any of the characters.**

**Fowl Manor _(A.N. Is Fowl Manor in Ireland?)_**

As Artemis stepped into the dining hall, he was attacked by two little children. "Arty, Arty!" they shouted as they hugged him. Artemis didn't quite know what to say, which had been becoming far more of a problem for him recently. Instead, he asked his mother and father, "How old are they?"

"Well," responded Angeline, "Robert and Kelly are both 3, though Robert is older by two minutes."

"And they just started talking," added Artemis Fowl Sr.

"We wanted to tell them everything about you so that they could recognize you," Angeline said.

Throughout the dinner, Artemis found himself talking to his little siblings, although he usually didn't enjoy chit-chat. The twins seemed to be just as clever and as talented as Artemis, but with an innocent nature which had not been tainted with a troubled childhood like Artemis. The twins astounded Artemis with their ability to converse so intellectually at such a young age.

When dinner was finished, Artemis stepped outside into the garden, to think about his plan once more.

"I have to do this to help my parents, and to protect the People," he told himself.

As he looked at all the different plants in the garden, being able to identify each one, he began feeling a strange tingling sensation in his body. It started in his fingertips, and started moving its way through his body. He looked up, and saw the source, the full moon. "Hmmm," Artemis said aloud, "I must have picked up some magic from both Qwan and Holly." He put his hand over his hazel eye. As the realisation washed over him, Artemis realised what he this meant. He began searching frantically for an acorn, and finally found one next to a formidable-looking thorn bush. Artemis quickly dug a small hole and buried the acorn in it. Then he put his hands onto the patch and waited. Five minutes of nothing passed, and he was finally gave up. "Maybe this magic of mine cannot be kept in this way," he sighed, before thinking of the dreadful alternative, "Or maybe it can't be stored at all…" But just as he was about to stand up, his hands began to vibrate, and he was thrown backwards by some invisible force, landing right in the thorn bush. As he stood up wearily, he noticed that he had at least 20 cuts all over his body. Suddenly, blue sparks began flying around the wounds, and soon he was completely healed. "Amazing," Artemis muttered softly to himself.

**LEP Headquarters, Lower Elements**

"Trouble!" Holly shouted and gave him a hug. Suddenly she remembered where she was and who she was talking to, "I mean, morning, Commander."

Trouble smiled wearily and motioned for her to sit, "Holly, it's good to see you back. I'm sorry that I could not greet you sooner, but I have been quite tied down."

"Thanks, Commander," Holly replied, "I'm very happy to be reinstated in my old position, now that Mulch and Doodah are involving themselves in the crime scene too." Then she quickly added, "On the good side, though!" when she saw her Commander's expression.

Trouble continued, "I need you to lead a team who can track down the culprits behind the robbery. You will have access to all the available sources."

"And these sources are?" queried Holly.

"Errr…well basically, it's just Foaly," Trouble murmured.

"So I'm meant to find robbers who managed to bypass the most complicated security systems that the People can provide, with only Foaly? This is sure going to be easy…" Holly said sarcastically, "Well, I ought to get started. See you later, Trouble."

Holly hastily rose and made her way towards the door. Just as she was about to exit, Trouble called to her, "Hey Holly, I'm really glad you're back. I missed you…"


	4. The One Where Things Get Fast

**Hello, everyone! Well, what to say here…I guess all I can do is to thank everyone who's reviewed the story. I'm kind of surprised (and a little disappointed) that there has been no constructive criticism. I kind of enjoy rebutting comments that I pass to be unfair…anyways, I still don't own Artemis or any of his little friends (or Butler). And don't forget to press that little button at the bottom of the page when you finish to submit a review!**

**Y2, The Lower Elements**

The atmosphere was dead silent. The only light came from hundreds of glowing torches with flames which had been shining for centuries, located all around the huge stony cavern. Suddenly, there was a loud bang, and an illuminating flash, accompanied by a great deal of smoke. The figure who had just robbed the jewel shop stepped out from this white blanket, holding the precious gem in his hand. Walking up to the wall of the cavern, he muttered, _'mea victoria accedit' _and several glowing points appeared on the wall, forming a rectangle. The figure placed his hand on this wall in the middle of the glowing points, and stepped through. He appeared on the ledge of a huge cliff, overlooking an ancient metropolis.

"Master," cried a servant as the figure came through, "did you obtain the gem?"

"Yes," he replied, "where is Noxa?"

"I am here," said a magnificent woman, with the most beautiful voice imaginable, "and I can see that your mission succeeded. Will you tell me your plan now, dear Potestas?"

"If you insist," Potestas replied, "but first let us make ourselves comfortable."

Unlike the cavern, this new place had light, for although still underground, the architects of this place had loved the sky, and had bewitched the roof to change from lightness to darkness accordingly. Potestas and Noxa floated down from the huge cliff, followed by their servant. The three figures looked exactly like humans except for their snow-white hair and eerie glowing blue eyes, which hardly matched their young appearances. When they at last landed outside a splendid palace, Potestas said to his servant, "Tiro, go and fetch the general. Tell him to prepare the troops. We shall be dining in Haven before the end of the week…

**Fowl Manor**

Artemis sat at his desk, waiting for his mother and father to come in. He was deep in thought, trying to concentrate all his magic so that he might use it properly. This was the moment, he was going to help his parents to forget all the pain which he had caused them by disappearing. He had to get everything perfect. Finally, there was a knock at the door.

"Hello, Arty," Angeline said cheerfully, "what is it that you wanted to see us about?"

"Please sit," Artemis replied. As they sat down on his bed, he walked over to them and stared them straight in the eyes. "All the stories which Butler told you were not true," Artemis said to them. Then he tried to layer his words in magic, like he had heard Holly do before, "My disappearance had nothing to do with fairies at all, I was captured by the mafia, and was only just able to escape."

"But how is that possible, son?" Artemis Sr. asked.

"Damn," thought Artemis, "it's not working."

Concentrating every part of his mind, he suddenly felt a tingling sensation overcome his body. It started in his fingertips and spread, englufing his body in a hot rush, "Butler was only feeling guilty for not being able to stop all the men who came after me," Artemis said in a voice which sounded a mixture of both treble and bass at the same time, "I was kidnapped, and was only just able to escape. I hope that you can forget all the pain which you've felt in the last three years…I'm sorry…" Artemis' parents both looked at Artemis silently, and repeated, "Of course…it was the mafia…"

Half an hour later, Artemis Sr. and Angeline left their son's room, looking very relaxed, as if three years of troubles had been washed away.

Artemis lay on his bed, meditating again. After that meeting with his parents, he felt completely calm. But that feeling wasn't going last long. There was another knock on the door, and Butler came in. "Hello, Artemis. I was just searching through the mail, and I found something quite interesting…Minerva's in Ireland, giving a lecture at a university. And I've decided you're going to go and watch it, or maybe I should say 'watch her'…"

**This chapter wasn't a very good one, but I think that the next one should be better…it will have a lot of new concepts though, because it will be where the story really starts moving quickly.**


	5. Backgrounds

**Well, it's the Melbourne Cup this weekend, so I've had an extended holiday! The review encouraged me to update a little sooner than I usually do in the extra time. This next chapter is pretty confusing but it's kind of important for the story to make sense. If you don't understand any part of it, just send me a private message. Please review, I don't own Artemis or any of the other characters, thankyou to everyone who has been reviewing this story, Thanks for reading! Did I leave anything out?**

**Y2, The Lower Elements**

Potestas sat in his golden throne, and Noxa sat in hers.

"Do you remember when our city was created?" he asked her, "Avion was the only underground city at the time, and our people, the Avionators, with our unmatched magic, lived happily as the others fought above the ground. All we wanted was to remain undisturbed, but the other fairies wanted to push the Mud People underground as well. I had no choice but to tell the fairies that if they wanted to send Mud Men down here to live with us, we would help the Mud Men to repel the fairies, and to lock them in some other dimension. And so all the other fairies combined their powers and harnessed them through those seven blasted warlocks. With all the powers of the People, not even my magic could stop them. The warlocks used their combined powers to encase our city is a magic stone, that could only be broken if a warlock wished to reanimate the stone."

"Yes, I remember," Noxa replied, "We used the last of our magic to preserve the lives of our people, so that we could one day come back and take total control of the underground. But tell me, why have we become reanimated now?"

"I believe that some untrained warlock must have tried a reanimation of someone or something, and their uncontrolled magic has caused a total reanimation of our own city." Potestas said, smiling evilly, "We must thank him for that, before we kill him."

**LEP, The Lower Elements**

Holly stepped into Foaly's office, and saw the centaur looking at pictures on his screen of his wedding with a certain lady centaur. When he saw Holly entered, he hastily changed the screen and looked at her, very red-faced.

"Putting your time to good use, I see," Holly scolded jokingly.

"Yeah, yeah," Foaly replied, "I'm missing my evening jog with Caballine to help you. Let me show you what we have, 'cause it isn't much!" The centaur opened up another holographic screen which had a picture Magic Gems Enterprises foyer. "This is the scene," Foaly explained, "and look what happens if we turn on the different filters. My filters should show where certain actions have taken place and when." One by one, he switched through the different filters; the technology filter, the heat filter, and the magic filter, as Holly desperately tried to see how these robbers could have made it through the foyer.

"It doesn't make any sense," Holly muttered, "There appears to have been no movement at all in the foyer…what exactly does the magic filter do?"

"It detects all the different types of magic since the People were moved underground, and we recently added warlock magic. There isn't a plausible way that these robbers could have stolen a gem."

"Am I able to go to the surface?" Holly asked.

"We've been given full clearance for surface visas by the new commander. I think he likes you…he suddenly became very 'busy' when I brought up the subject at his promotion dinner!" Foaly said, grinning stupidly.

Holly blushed slightly, but continued, "We can talk about your assumptions later, Foaly, but now I guess it's time to visit our old friend, Artemis."

**National University of Ireland**

**(A.N. Apologies to anyone who actually attends the school. I have no idea about the school, so anything I write will probably be inaccurate!)**

Artemis walked with Butler into the auditorium, outside of which was a sign which read, "TONIGHT; Minerva Paradizo: the nature of atoms." They took two seats near the back, as the whole auditorium was packed with students at least 8 years older than Minerva. When she finally walked onto the stage, Artemis was absolutely breath-taken. If he had thought that she was pretty when she was 12, she was a complete goddess now. Still with beautiful blonde, corkscrew curls, and glasses, Artemis was unable to take his eyes off her for the next hour.

Finally, she completed the talk by saying, "So remember; all that glitters is not gold, but at least they contain free electrons." This was met with complete silence by the entire auditorium except for Artemis, who let out a loud laugh. Minerva's pretty eyes quickly darted to the source of the laughter, and an expression of utter astonishment came over her face. She quickly stepped off the platform as the students applauded and began to file out. When everyone had left, Minerva walked up to the back of the auditorium quickly, where Artemis and Butler still sat.

"Artemis?" she asked, "Is it really you? Butler? Is it really him?"

"Yes," Artemis replied, "it's really me."

"You made it back," Minerva said, "like you said. I'm really sorry for being so foolish and distracting Butler…the eye is another result of the time tunnel, I suppose."

Artemis smiled, "It's alright, I forgive you. And yes, the eye is because of the time tunnel."

He really appreciated that Minerva was able grasp concepts so quickly, like no other person that he knew, except maybe Foaly.

"Do you want to go for a walk?" Artemis asked, nervously.

"Sure," Minerva said, blushing slightly. Butler was watching the whole scenario comfortably from 10 metres back, smiling at his charge.

Just as Minerva and Artemis were about to walk out of the auditorium, there was a loud crack, and Holly Short appeared.

"Hello, Artemis, Minerva and Butler," Holly said hurriedly, "the LEP really needs your help. There's been a gem robbery, but I'm thinking that there is something far more serious happening."

"Errr," Artemis said, hesitating. He really didn't want to disappear from his family again.

"The People are depending on you," Holly said, "We need your help. Even Foaly is stumped."

"You told your parents that you would be away for the rest of the week to come to the university, Artemis," Butler said, then he asked, "How long will you need Artemis for, Holly?"

"Probably only a few hours," Holly replied, "then he can come back and be safe at home again."

"OK," Artemis finally decided, "I'll come. How do you plan to take me and Butler to Foaly?"

"Ummm…" Holly said, thinking of the best way to respond, "It's not just you and Butler that I'm taking. Foaly said to bring your _girlfriend _along as well…"

Artemis and Minerva both blushed furiously, "Stupid puberty," they both muttered softly.


	6. The Plot Thickens

**Damn you, reviewers! Lol! I always feel guilty when there are lots of reviews from readers and not enough updates from me…so I've taken some time just to add another chapter. Pretty happy that everyone so far has understood the plot, as the story doesn't get much more complicated than that. Please review, I don't own Artemis, etc.**

**By the way, the name "Potestas" was based on the Latin word meaning "power".**

**Y2, The Lower Elements**

Potestas sat in a meditation chamber, floating in the air. Red sparks flew through the air around him, encircling his body. He was focusing all the magic energy around him, as he would need it for the mission ahead. It had taken centuries to formulate his perfect plan, and it had not been easy. All he had known was that somehow he had to take control of the entire world beneath the surface at the end of the plan. Although the bodies of all his people had been frozen in stone, their minds had all still been working. At first he had thought of storming the underground with all his troops. But this would be foolish, he had decided. This would only result in buildings and scores of his soldiers being destroyed. He needed something that would only weaken the People of Haven, without destroying all the structures already there. Potestas had been in deep thought for many centuries when his perfect plan had finally hit. He could build the greatest bio-bomb ever known to the People. This would kill hundreds or thousands of fairies, but it would serve its cause and would not destroy all the buildings which the Avionators could later use. His soldiers could go through Haven afterwards, sweeping up survivors and using them as slaves. Potestas would once again rule the entire underground. The meditating Potestas smiled as he thought about this again…for he knew just where to find the energy to create this great weapon of destruction.

**National University of Ireland**

Everyone had their hands linked as the three humans and Holly stood in a circle. Holly spoke into her helmet, "Ready," and her hands began to glow. Soon the spark of magic had travelled through the entire circle, and the entire group began to fade. Suddenly, there was a pop, and they all disappeared.

**LEP, The Lower Elements**

The group materialised in mid-air in the middle of Foaly's office, which had been recently redesigned to actually fit Butler. Butler, Holly and Artemis all landed with loud thumps. Minerva, with her eyes closed, landed on Artemis, who also had his eyes closed. The two teenagers opened their eyes and felt themselves go red, as they saw each other, in their very compromising position. "Lucky Foaly isn't here," Artemis said, "Or I'd never live this down…"

"No, Artemis, you won't," Foaly said from his chair, whilst taking photos or the two embarrassed geniuses with a small digital camera.

"Let's talk about Artemis and Minerva later, can we?" Holly said, standing up, "Let's just get on with the task at hand." Minerva quickly got off Artemis' lap and walked over to Foaly and Holly. As Artemis stood up as well, he noticed a deep cut on his arm from the fall. Holly noticed it too, "Want me to fix it?"

"No, I'm alright," Artemis replied and Holly turned back to face Foaly. Suddenly, blue sparks began to dance around Artemis' cut, healing it magically. Artemis quickly shook the sleeve of his suit back over his arm. It wasn't time to let his secret known to fairies yet. It would surely be a recipe of disaster.

"OK," Foaly said, opening up a holographic screen, "I'll keep the formalities short. Hello, Minerva, I am Foaly, a centaur as you have no doubt noticed. You are currently underground, where all the fairies live, in the LEP headquarters. We are the the police for all of Haven, which is where most of the fairies live, and as much as it pains me to say it, we need your help on a case. Now, since we've got two geniuses here now, so we should be able to solve this case."

Foaly quickly went through all the information about the crime, and the two geniuses absorbed everything at a lightning speed. When the centaur had presented everything, including all the filters, Minerva asked, "Is it possible that the robbers used some sort of really potent magic to conceal their tracks?"

"No," Holly replied, "that magic filter should pick up on any magic used at all, and any magic would leave a mark."

"What if the magic wasn't detected by the filter?" Artemis asked.

"Impossible," Foaly rebutted, "that filter detects all magic. Warlock magic was recently added as well, so that removes that possibility."

"If you only recently added a new type of magic, doesn't that mean that there could be other types of magic that is not known?" Minerva asked.

"And if that is the case," Artemis said worriedly, "Then the People may have a far greater problem on their hands than they anticipated."

**That's all for today, folks! I'll try and update ASAP. I've been trying to make an effort to make the updates faster…sorry if they're still not fast enough, but I don't really have too much time at the moment.**


	7. Anyone confused?

**Yes, it's me again. Once again, I'm really sorry for having such short chapters, but I don't really have much time to write at the moment. Please review, as it does encourage me to update faster. I do not own Artemis, and yes, I do support Artemis x Minerva. And my plot is probably not the most easy one to understand, so if anyone gets confused at any part of it, just ask, ok?**

**LEP, The Lower Elements**

"It's inconceivable!" Foaly said, grinding his teeth,

"But it's still possible," Artemis replied, "so we have to check it out."

"Do you have any files on the history of Haven to look at?" Minerva asked, desperate to help out the People after she had caused so much trouble before.

"No," Foaly said, "None of my history files would help us explore this chain of events. We've never experienced a problem like this before. You'd have to go to the Haven Museum to look at the files."

"One problem," Butler reminded them, "Three Mud People are not going to be able to walk through Haven and into a museum, are they?"

"Don't worry," Holly replied, smirking, "We'll be able to fix that…"

**Y2, The Lower Elements**

After his meditation, Potestas stepped out of his chamber and went to see his general. He floated through the streets, looking at his Avionaters. Little children ran through the streets, hiding behind great sandstone buildings whilst playing a game, or practising their duelling. The city of Avion looked just as Egypt had before the empire had crumbled. It had similar buildings, and the population wore similar clothing to the time. In fact, the architects who had built the city had been captured from Egypt during the time of Cleopatra and Mark Antony **(A.N: I needed some sort of link between Potestas and all the Latin in the story!).** But the future of Avion would be very unlike Egypt, for Potestas had no intention of letting his own Empire crumble. He would take over all of the underground, and perhaps above the ground, with time. He smiled evilly as he thought of this and finally, he floated up to a high balcony of the miliary building, where his general was.

"General," Potestas greeted cheerfully, for he had the greatest respect for his commander of the armies.

"Yessir," the general replied, "the troops are ready for your inspection."

"Thankyou, General. Has my wife set out yet?"

"Yessir, she left just after you entered your chamber."

"Good, then let us see the troops!"

The general led Potestas over to the edge of the balcony on the other side to which he had come up. Standing on the ground were 50,000 Avionaters, and 1000 trolls, ready to fight. 51,000 was the entire population of Avion, so Potestas was taking quite a large risk by only leaving 1,000 in the city. But it was a risk that he was going to take, if it meant that he could take Haven.

The Avionaters were indeed the strongest force of magic imaginable. They had become so skilled with their magic, that they did not need wings to float, having learnt to levitate and fly without such objects. Neither did they need weapons through which to harness their magic, being able to use their powers directly from their hands. The Avionaters were also the only race to actually tame the trolls. They were able to command these beasts, which could destroy entire cities in minutes. But possibly the most formidable asset of the Avionaters was their ability to hold almost unlimited magic whilst in their own city. Unlike most fairies, which got their magic from the moon, the Avionaters had adapted to life underground, and had learnt to obtain magic from a certain gem. This certain gem was the ruby, and there were hundreds of them in every wall in the entire city of Avion. This meant that as long as they remained in Avion, the Avionaters could replenish their magic almost as quickly as they used it. If the People had known a little bit more about Avion and the Avionaters, they might have been a little more worried. The gem which Potestas had stolen from the Gem Enterprises was the biggest ruby known to the People…

**LEP, The Lower Elements**

Artemis and Minerva said simultaneously, "Will our ears go back to normal?" before Holly had even revealed her plan.

"How'd you know what I was going to do?" Holly asked in amazement.

"Genius," they both sighed, "we can't help it…"

Holly smiled and said, "Well yes, your ears will be back to normal. Foaly, will you get up?"

Foaly was in stitches on the ground, as he had just realised what Holly was planning. Only Butler wasn't quite certain what was about to happen.

"What are you going to do, Holly?" Butler queried.

"You'll see," Holly replied, as Foaly finally got up and went to his storage cupboard. The centaur pulled out a strange contraption which looked like a bike helmet with lots of glowing lights.

"This is a HelixObscurer, which can cause physical changes to _seem _to take place in someone. Far more safe than Opal's pituitary gland, which _actually _caused physical changes to occur. I suppose that this is the machine that you want, Holly?"

"Yes, thankyou Foaly," Holly said.

"So you'll change Minerva and my ears so that we look like elves?" Artemis asked, "and we may go to the museum in disguise?"

"And me," added Butler.

"No, old friend, not you," Artemis replied, "unfortunately your size could hardly pass off as a fairy, and it would be far too dangerous to arouse suspicion."

"There is no way that I would be willing to let you go around Haven unprotected. You are my charge, and I have a duty to protect you." Butler said, defiantly.

"Butler, you have to trust him," Holly told him gently, "I'll stay with them the whole time."

Every instinct told Butler not to let Artemis go out unprotected into an unknown territory, but thought better than to continue objecting. No doubt, Artemis would probably win in the end, and Butler had learnt over the years to trust Artemis' judgement.

"OK," Butler sighed, defeated, "But you must be careful. Do I have your word?"

"Yes," Artemis replied, "Now let's get on with this quickly."

Holly placed the machine of Artemis' head and pressed a button. Artemis was really surprised that he seemed to feel absolutely nothing. Before he knew it, Holly removed the helmet and did the same procedure to Minerva. When the helmet came of Minerva's head, Artemis was amazed to see that her ears were just like Holly's. Her hair was still the same lovely blonde curls though, and her eyes were still that beautiful blue shade which was constantly enticing him..."Got to concentrate!" he chided himself.

"Now, that's more like it!" Holly said, "Have a look in the mirror."

The two teenagers went over to a mirror and were stupefied by what they saw, as they had felt nothing when the HelixObsurer was on. Both their ears were now like Holly's, although the rest of their features were exactly the same. Artemis tried to run his hands over his new ears, but they ran straight through.

"Holograms?" Artemis asked, pleasantly surprised, "I thought that you could come up with something more creative than that, Foaly."

"They're cheap and efficient," Foaly replied, shrugging, "But we can go into that later. There's still one big step left before you and your _girlfriend _can go out into Haven."

Minerva and Artemis looked at each other nervously…

Twenty minutes later, Holly, Artemis and Minerva left Foaly's office. It had taken the good part of 15 minutes to convince Artemis to change out of his suit into something more appropriate of the People. Holly and Foaly had put Minerva into a very short white dress, which Artemis could barely take his eyes off. Then they had put Artemis into a Robin Hood styled outfit, which had sent everyone, even Minerva, into fits of laughter. Finally, everyone had calmed down, and Minerva, Artemis and Holly had finally set out for the museum.

"So what are we doing here whilst they are gone?" Butler asked Foaly after the three companions had left, worried that it might be something very complicated.

"We're going to work on my new invention, the Magicoder." Foaly said, proudly, "It is supposed to intercept messages sent via magic so that they can be decoded and we can defend against revolts or attacks. Nothing too difficult, just a little bit of quantum physics and chemistry."

Butler could only groan at the prospect, as he slumped down into a chair.

**There ya go, another chapter! Please review, as usual! More reviews, faster updates!**


	8. Haven Museum

**Hello! Still hoping for a few more reviews…thanks to everyone who has already reviewed though! Press the pretty review button for faster updates! I'm going away in about 3 or 4 weeks so I won't be writing for the rest of the year after that, and probably not until Feb next year! I'd like to finish the story before that, but there'll be a much better chance of that if I get more reviews! I don't own Artemis**

**Haven City, The Lower Elements**

Holly led Artemis and Minerva down the streets of Haven, towards the Haven Museum. No-one paid any notice to them, as they blended into the crowd perfectly. Just as they were a block away from the museum, Holly noticed something strange.

"Artemis?" she asked suspiciously, "How is your arm healed?"

Artemis looked down at his arm, which was no longer covered by the sleeve of a suit.

"That's because…" he began, but decided it would be better with the truth. Even if he did lie, Minerva would probably catch him out, as they both had psychology degrees. He told Holly and Minerva everything, including how he had mesmerized his parents. When he concluded, Holly was quite amazed, if not slightly worried.

"You managed to mesmerize two fully grown adults without any training?" she asked in disbelief, "I'm not sure whether to be amazed or worried…last thing we need is a magical criminal mastermind."

"Ex-criminal mastermind," Artemis said, smiling.

"I suppose," Holly responded, smiling as well.

Before they could talk further about Artemis' magic, the trio arrived at the Haven Museum.

They swiftly swept through the first few rooms, before they reached a colossal size door, which was about 3 times as high as Butler. A vicious looking pixie guarded the door, but cheerfully opened it when Holly flashed her LEP badge. When they stepped into the room, Minerva and Artemis gasped. Lined on every single wall was a book, at least 1 million of them.

"We'll need to look at history before the fairies were sent underground," Holly exclaimed, pointing at a certain section, "that part is what we need to read."

The section in question was actually quite vast. There were at least 100,000 books there, all about the size of a detailed dictionary. Artemis, Holly and Minerva immediately started reading. Being geniuses, Artemis and Minerva read at incredible speeds. Holly, although reading a little slower, was going through about the same number of books though. Why? Well, let's just say that the teenagers were getting a little distracted at times…

After about an hour of reading, Minerva found what they needed. "The Avionaters were a race of underground dwelling fairies, famous for their incredibly powers, including the ability to morph, and their attraction to number sequences," she read out aloud. Artemis came over to read too. Soon, the two teens had ripped through the book, and both had worried expressions on their faces. "That bad?" Holly asked, although not really wanting to know the answer. Artemis nodded and Holly sighed.

Before they could research any further, a voice came in over Holly's helmet.

"Holly?" Foaly said quickly, "I think you better get back here. We've found something."

**LEP, The Lower Elements**

Holly, Artemis and Minerva arrived back in Foaly's office out of breath. "What is it, Foaly?" Holly asked quickly, as Foaly had sounded very urgent.

Foaly started, "When I…"

"We," Butler interrupted.

"…we finished working on my Magicoder, we picked up a very strange signal."

He clicked a button and a 1000 numbers appeared on the walls. 1, 3, 7, 9, 13, 15, 21, 25, 31, 33, 37, 43, 49, 51, 63, 67, 69, 73, 75, 79, 87, 93, 99…

"It was written with a type of magic which I've never seen before…I've been unable to decode it as yet."

"It's a lucky number sequence," Artemis and Minerva said simultaneously.

"A what?" Holly asked, amazed.

"It's a type of number sequence, first discussed by Stanislaw Ulam," Artemis exclaimed.

"Well, you can tell us about it later," Butler said, "first, I think you and your girlf-, I mean Minerva, should get decoding."

Artemis and Minerva both chose to ignore Butler's mistake although they both felt tingly inside whenever someone referred to them like that. "I think I'll let Artemis crack this," Minerva said, "He's probably a lot faster and more experienced at this than me." Artemis didn't respond, for Minerva was probably correct. He picked up two pens, one black and one pink. Then he stood in the centre of the room and stared at all the numbers **(AN: Think 'A Beautiful Mind'). **Eventually, he began circling different numbers with his pens. He drew lines all over the place, crossing from number to number. To anyone watching, it would look as if Artemis was drawing some very obscure picture. After half an hour, Artemis stopped, with deep frown lines on his face. "Oberon's Theatre," he said, grimacing, "17-November…"

**Ooooohhh, 17-November…can anyone guess what that might mean? Please review, and I'll update!**


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